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Master's Thesis Development and Defence
Study Course Description
Course Description Statuss:Approved
Course Description Version:3.00
Study Course Accepted:17.08.2023 08:59:35
| Study Course Information | |||||||||
| Course Code: | VPUPK_309 | LQF level: | Level 7 | ||||||
| Credit Points: | 14.00 | ECTS: | 21.00 | ||||||
| Branch of Science: | Psychology | Target Audience: | Psychology | ||||||
| Study Course Supervisor | |||||||||
| Course Supervisor: | Jeļena Koļesņikova | ||||||||
| Study Course Implementer | |||||||||
| Structural Unit: | Department of Health Psychology and Paedagogy | ||||||||
| The Head of Structural Unit: | |||||||||
| Contacts: | Riga, 5 J. Asara Street, vppk rsu[pnkts]lv, +37167061587 | ||||||||
| Study Course Planning | |||||||||
| Full-Time - Semester No.1 | |||||||||
| Lectures (count) | 0 | Lecture Length (academic hours) | 0 | Total Contact Hours of Lectures | 0 | ||||
| Classes (count) | 0 | Class Length (academic hours) | 0 | Total Contact Hours of Classes | 0 | ||||
| Total Contact Hours | 0 | ||||||||
| Study course description | |||||||||
| Preliminary Knowledge: | Research methodology. | ||||||||
| Objective: | To improve graduate students' comprehension and skills in independent development of their own research project that testify to acquisition of theoretical knowledge and practical skills, as well as methodological and organisational skills in the field of psychology. | ||||||||
| Assessment | |||||||||
| Unaided Work: | To carry out research according to the developed project that includes data collection, processing and analysis, description and interpretation of the obtained results, conclusions and proposals; submission and defence of Master's thesis. Provide feedback at the end of the study course (fill in the questionnaire). | ||||||||
| Assessment Criteria: | Master's students implement and defend the Master's thesis; evaluation takes place in accordance with RSU Regulations regarding development of Master's thesis. 1. All course requirements are fulfilled within the specified time. 2. Master’s thesis includes: Introduction: • Describes the topicality of the research and the problem, which is based on the latest, most significant research; • Theoretical guidelines and discussions are reflected; • The goal is defined; objectives, research question (s) or hypothesis (es), which are mutually agreed, correspond to the research topic; • A short description of the part of the method is made, including information about the research participants, tools and procedure, as well as data processing methods. Theoretical part: • The most important and recent research is included; • The place of the specific research is marked among the existing researches; • Primary sources predominate; • Critical source analysis is performed; • Theoretical justification allows to formulate a research question / hypothesis; • Scientific style is used; • Correct references are created. Part of the method: • Clear and detailed description of the research participants, tools and procedure, including the ethical aspects of the research (for each research question / hypothesis, the research methodology is described according to the research design, describing data sources, data collection methods and procedures); • The data processing methods used in the analysis of the data obtained in the study are described. Results part: • Contains a summary of data processing; • The results related to the hypothesis (es) or research question (s) are presented in a concise and clear way; • The description of the results includes the information about the descriptive and inferential statistics on which the author has based his/her conclusions and has referred to the interpretation part of the results; • Clearly formulated the main findings of the research that are related to the research question (s) or hypothesis (es); • The research questions / hypotheses are answered and conclusions are formulated as to whether the research hypothesis has been fully or partially confirmed or not; • The obtained results are explained and the relation of the results to the research problem in general is discussed. Part of the study conclusions, recommendations and proposals: • The main conclusions on whether the results obtained support the hypothesis (es) are clearly stated. • The answer (s) to the research question (s) is clearly given; • Possible practical application of the results is explained; • Possible directions for further research are outlined. List of information sources used: • is designed according to the standards of the American Psychological Association (APA). 3. Defence and presentation of the Master's Thesis: • The presentation is clear; • The student is able to answer questions and participate in discussions; • The presentation is given in the allocated time. | ||||||||
| Final Examination (Full-Time): | Defence (Master’s thesis) | ||||||||
| Final Examination (Part-Time): | |||||||||
| Learning Outcomes | |||||||||
| Knowledge: | Students understand, compare and critically evaluate different theoretical approaches and research results related to the research topic; understand the requirements for the development and implementation of a Master's thesis, as well as evaluation criteria. | ||||||||
| Skills: | Students apply their knowledge to define the research problem, to select and critically evaluate the professional information sources and to use the evidence-based practice in order to define the research problem and justify the topicality; students define the research aim and question(s)/hypothesis(es); they select the research methodology appropriate to the aim of the research and describe the planned methods of data analysis. Based on the research project, the following activities are performed: data collection and analysis, interpretation of empirical data according to the research question(s)/hypothesis(s), evaluation of research limitations; drawing conclusions; applying ethical standards to the research; defence of the research. | ||||||||
| Competencies: | Independently plan research design in accordance with the basic principles and ethical norms of the research, present the research. | ||||||||
| Bibliography | |||||||||
| No. | Reference | ||||||||
| Required Reading | |||||||||
| 1 | Akadēmiskā godīguma terminu vārdnīca. Akadēmiskā godīguma vispārējās vadlīnijas. (2020). Uzziņu izdevums. Rīga: RTU Izdevniecība. 161 lpp. | ||||||||
| 2 | Mārtinsone, K., Pipere, A. (red.) (2021). Zinātniskās darbības metodoloģija. Izdevniecība: RSU | ||||||||
| 3 | Mārtinsone, K. un Pipere A. (red.). (2018). Zinātniskā rakstīšana un pētījumu rezultātu izplatīšana. Rīga: RSU, 301 lpp. | ||||||||
| 4 | Mārtinsone, K. un Šneidere, K. (2020). Metodiskie norādījumi maģistra darbu izstrādei RSU RSU psiholoģijas, mākslu terapijas un supervīzijas studiju programmās. RSU izdevniecība: Rīga. | ||||||||
| 5 | Rīgas Stradiņa universitāte (2020). Nolikums par Kvalifikācijas darba, Studējošā pētnieciskā darba, Bakalaura darba un Maģistra darba izstrādāšanu un aizstāvēšanu. Pieejams no: https://www.rsu.lv/studentiem/dokumenti sadaļā 'Pētnieciskais darbs'. | ||||||||
| Additional Reading | |||||||||
| 1 | Creswell, J. W. (2009). Research Design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approach. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE. | ||||||||
| 2 | Howitt D., Cramer D., (2011). Introduction to Research Methods in Psychology. 3rd edition. London: Pearson | ||||||||
| 3 | Leech, N.L., Barrett, K.C., & Morgan, G.A. (2008). SPSS for intermediate statistics: Use andinterpretation. 3rd edition. New York: London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. | ||||||||
| 4 | Mārtinsone, K. & Miltuze, K. (Red.). (2015). Psiholoģija. 1.-3.sēj. Rīga: Zvaigzne ABC. | ||||||||
| 5 | Raščevska, M. (2005). Psiholoģisko testu un aptauju konstruēšana un adaptācija. Rīga: RaKA. | ||||||||
| 6 | Rust, J. (2009). Modern psychometrics : the science of psychological assessment. Hove, East | ||||||||
| 7 | Sussex Wilson, M. (2005). Constructing measures : an item response modeling approach. New York. | ||||||||
| Other Information Sources | |||||||||
| 1 | Pētniecības terminu skaidrojošā vārdnīca | ||||||||
